L.A.'s Sheffield reveals torn ligament in finger

LOS ANGELES {AP} Los Angeles Dodgers left fielder Gary Sheffield revealed Saturday that he has a torn ligament in his right index finger, but remained on the active roster.

Sheffield's finger has been bothering him since April 25, the night he threw out two Pittsburgh Pirates at home plate in the first inning on back-to-back singles by Aramis Ramirez and Kevin Young.

The Dodgers sent the six-time All-Star for an MRI exam on Thursday. Sheffield went 3-for-31 on the Dodgers' road trip, and was gripping the bat with only four fingers of his top hand.

"When you have a complete tear, of course you're going to have pain. It's just a matter of what you can withstand," said Sheffield, who missed most of the 1995 season because of a torn ligament in his left thumb.

"Athletes can withstand a lot of pain because you have so much adrenaline going, you don't know how bad it's hurting. I just have this confidence about myself that I can play with one hand, and I want to play no matter what."

Sheffield, who expected to miss his second straight game Saturday night when Los Angeles played Houston, will sit out at least another week while wearing an apparatus to stimulate blood flow in the finger.

"I've just got to do what I've got to do for a week, and hopefully it will respond. If not, go to plan B  which is probably to go on the DL," Sheffield said. "I've been giving it as much treatment as I possible can, from the time I open my eyes in the morning to the last time I close them."

Throughout his 14-year career, Sheffield has had chronic problems with his hands because of the way he grips the bat and the savage manner in which he hits the ball. The power from those 290 career homers has to come from somewhere, and his swing consistently caused the blood vessels to burst  forcing him to tape his fingers together.

"Talking to the doctor," Sheffield said, "he told me that if it was a knee or elbow, he would do surgery on it. But he said a finger should heal with the proper rest.

"Obviously, when you're in the middle of a season, you don't have that much time to rest. Nobody likes to miss games. I was fine with it at first, but it gets tough on your wrist and forearm because you have to compensate."